Murphy’s Law for Home Sellers – Dealing With What Might Go Wrong

Murphy’s Law – if it can go wrong, it will go wrong. And anyone trying to sell their home has to be prepared to deal with it. If you know however what might go wrong you may be better prepared to put it right – or at least deal with situation without panicking.

Some People Just Won’t Love Your Home the Way that You Do – Most homeowners take a lot of pride in their home and it is not because they don’t love it that they selling up. Most home sellers have other reasons for moving on – they need more space, they are relocating for work and so on. Potential buyers however want to purchase a home that can be moulded to suit their tastes, so the chances they will love it “as is” are minimal.

In these cases, don’t be offended. Often, even though home buyers will vocalize their intentions to make some big changes they will still go ahead and make an offer. It can be hard but sellers need to disconnect from their home emotionally whenever it is shown.

Your Home May Not Be Worth What You Think – You took your time deciding on the best asking price for your home. You checked all the comps, you asked your Realtor for advice. Yet no buyer has yet to match that asking price.

So do you give in and take the lower offer or hold out for the right bid? That is up to you but you do need to understand that your home is only really worth what a buyer thinks it is. If you did all your homework and the offer is way below the asking price it may be prudent to refuse, you are probably being low balled. But if it is only off by a thousand or so you should still consider it, especially if there are a number of other similar properties for sale in your area.

Buyers Will Annoy You – Potential home buyers – let’s call them home shoppers – can be annoying. Some will leave their empty coffee cup on your counter and others may open up every cupboard in your kitchen and then leave them all that way when they head to the next room. Some will bring little kids with them who run and scream and others will talk a little too loudly when discussing with their partner what they don’t like about your home.

Unless they are truly offensive though, you really do have to grin and bear it. The family with all the screaming kids may end up being the ones that think that your home is the perfect one for them. Want to know the best way to deal with this one though? Whenever possible just don’t be there when your home is being shown. Take a break and let your Realtor deal with these little annoyances, they are used to it, believe me.

The Home Inspection May Be a Shock – Apart from overpricing there is no bigger deal killer than a bad home inspection. Home inspections can turn up all kinds of unseen problems that end up adversely affecting the smooth sale of your home.

The best way to avoid any nasty surprises is to order your own home inspection before you put your home on the market. Get a home seller’s inspection, and you’ll have advance knowledge of any problems that must be fixed or that might devalue your home when a buyer gets their’s done.